1. Introduction

Natural latex rubber is a white liquid that can be extracted from rubber trees during rainy seasons. This rubber is the base for many products. Rubber trees are cultivated in tropical areas around the world where the climates are more temperate.

2. Report Summary

UNG Agriculture, Inc. has been conducting various test trials with rubber trees for the past 3 years. The summary below is based on results from multiple test trials in this period. The test trials were done on farmers’ lands and were supervised and supported by our staff experienced in rubber tree farming. These test trials were conducted in Kompong Cham and Kratie provinces.

Table 1. Summary of Rubber Tree Test Trials (Per Hectare)

3. Non-Quantitative Observations

There were changes in the general nature of the rubber tree plants and soil that were not observed in the trees grown with chemical fertilizers. The farmers and staff were instructed to observe and monitor the improvement in soil structure, roots, plant health, and latex quality. Their observations are listed below.

3.1 Soil

Within 15 to 20 days of SoilBio1 application, the soil becomes looser, less dense. In about a month, the farmers slowly noticed the return of earth worms to their soil.

3.2 Roots

Farmers noticed an increase in root volume especially in areas where SoilBio1 were applied.

3.3 Plants & Leaves

After 15-20 days of SoilBio1 application, there were notable changes in the leaf health. The leaves looked healthier, larger, and shinier in appearance. In fact, the leaves tended to fall about a month later than those planted in the chemical field.  This is due to the larger and deeper roots and the moisture retention improvement in the soil.

3.4 Latex

After the notable leaf changes, the latex flowed better and the latex production started to increase slowly. The dried rubber content (DRC) also started to stabilize and did not fluctuate greatly with rain. This dried rubber content increased slowly with the second and third applications of SoilBio1 fertilizer and some farmers reported their DRCs of up to 21.

3.5 Disease And Insect

After 15-20 days of SoilBio1 application, there were notable changes in the leaf health, and the Leave Spot disease started to decrease in occurrence. The next observations were the reduction of Tapping Panel Dryness occurrences. The rubber latex flowed easier. In short, SoilBio1 application helped in reducing all the diseases listed in the table above significantly.